The ship's bow collided with a massive wave, lifting it high into the sky. Land was visible, but it was oriented in the opposite direction. All the passengers were anxious not to miss their chance to reach the shore. If they hesitated even for a moment, they would find themselves plunged into the dark abyss below.
Ethan's gaze narrowed as he noticed the invisible fluctuations in the space around them. He could perceive the electromagnetic energy of the world shifting; all they needed was to make contact with that force for their gravitational trajectory to be corrected. The ship flew steadily toward it, surrounded by a deadly silence.
The only sounds were the creaking of the ship's wooden structure as it sped toward the continent, the wind blowing across the deck, the heavy breathing of the crew, and the roaring cascade of water flowing beneath them.
As the ship shifted with the wind and gradually approached the land's force field, it dodged numerous tentacles along the way. Someone at the edge of the ship took a quick peek at the pit below them.
The giant black tentacles originated from the deep abyss. With each glance into that darkness, his heart raced, and his breath grew heavier; he felt an unsettling tension.
Ethan felt a surge of unease. He glanced back and saw the man gazing down. Cursing inwardly, he shouted at him, "Don't look down!" But it was too late.
Startled by Ethan's shout, the man jolted and turned to face Ethan and the others, who were watching him in fear. At that moment, he recalled a famous quote: "When you stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back at you." He looked back, and the darkness quaked, revealing itself. A single eye emerged, resembling the inky void of a black hole, poised to consume the souls of the living, a harbinger of chaos and destruction. It fixed its gaze on the small ship hurtling toward the continent.
"Leave the ship, jump as high as you can!" shouted Ethan as he rushed towards the ship's bow, ready to face the upcoming tentacles. "I am not ready to confront you," he murmured, sensing disaster ahead."Leave the ship, jump as high as you can!" shouted Ethan as he rushed towards the ship's bow, ready to face the upcoming tentacles. "I am not ready to confront you," he murmured, sensing disaster ahead.
Amidst the chaos, the colossal tentacles anchoring the flying continent writhed like ancient leviathans, their sheer size dwarfing mountains. Yet it was not these behemoths that struck terror into the hearts of the crew—it was the medium-sized appendages surging toward the ship with terrifying speed. Though smaller than the main monstrosities, these were still titanic in scale, each capable of obliterating the massive vessel with a single crushing blow. The air vibrated with the sound of their approach, a deep, resonant hum echoing through the very marrow of those aboard.
"Jump!" Victor's voice tore through the cacophony, raw and commanding, leaving no room for hesitation. He was already moving, a blur of motion as he launched himself toward salvation. As the second strongest warrior on the ship, his strength was legendary—second only to Ethan, whose power bordered on mythic. But even Ethan's might would mean nothing against the relentless advance of the monstrous limbs.
Victor shot forward like a cannonball, muscles coiled with desperation and determination. The force of his leap propelled him toward the shimmering barrier of the force field separating the ship from the floating continent. For a fleeting moment, he felt the cold grip of uncertainty—would his jump be enough? Then, with a bone-jarring impact, he breached the barrier.
Agony erupted within him the instant he crossed the threshold. It was as though his body had been turned inside out, every organ twisted and churned by an unseen force. His stomach roiled violently, vision blurred as waves of nausea threatened to overwhelm him. Gravity itself seemed to rebel, pulling him in conflicting directions before finally snapping into place. He plummeted downward, the pull of the continent's gravity seizing him like an invisible hand and dragging him toward its surface.
The wind screamed past his ears as he fell, his body hurtling like a stone cast from the heavens. Below him, the alien landscape of the flying continent loomed closer, its jagged terrain promising no soft landing. Behind him, the ship groaned under the assault of the tentacles, the sound of splintering wood and twisting metal mingling with the panicked cries of those left behind. The world was a maelstrom of chaos and terror, yet Victor's mind remained focused, instincts honed to a razor's edge. Survival was all that mattered now.
As he descended, the enormity of what lay ahead began to sink in. This was no mere escape—it was a plunge into the unknown, a desperate gamble against forces far beyond human comprehension.
Witnessing this outcome, Ethan nodded grimly. "What are you waiting for?" he barked at the people still standing petrified in fear. His eyes narrowed as he surveyed their frozen forms. "Fear is one of the reasons so many have died," he thought bitterly.
"I don't want to die!" a man cried out, breaking from the group and rushing towards the edge of the ship before leaping towards the land. For a moment, hope flickered in his eyes as he soared through the air. But his jump lacked the necessary strength. He felt his body begin to sink. "No… No!" he screamed, his voice trailing off as he plummeted downwards, his desperate cries echoing in the chaos.
His teammates watched in horror, their terror magnified by the man's tragic fate. Panic spread like wildfire among them. Seeing no other solution, Ethan gripped his trident firmly, his resolve hardening. With a powerful thrust, he drove the weapon into the center of the ship, splitting it halfway. The crew gasped in shock, curses spilling from their lips as the vessel groaned under the force of Ethan's decisive action.
"What are you doing? Do you want us dead?!" someone shouted, and a chorus of curses erupted, directed at Ethan. He remained unfazed, his expression indifferent as he walked away. "No matter what, you'll end up dying if you don't jump," he said calmly.
A man's scream pierced the air as a tentacle grabbed the ship by its sides, slowly tightening its grip. More tentacles surged forward, beginning to crush the vessel into splinters. "Jump!" someone else screamed, igniting a desperate spark of survival within the remaining crew. One by one, they began leaping towards the floating continent, driven by sheer instinct.
Ethan strode to the edge of the ship and peered down, his gaze icy and resolute. "Wait for me. When I'm ready, I'll come for you," he muttered under his breath.
He looked towards the land, determination etched on his face. Taking a few steps back, veins bulged in his legs as a dark gold aura enveloped them. With a powerful leap, he launched himself like a cannonball, shooting towards the sky land with unyielding force.
"I have never loved this sensation," Ethan murmured as he felt the same disorienting upheaval Victor had experienced upon crossing the force field. Gravity shifted violently, and suddenly it seemed as if the ship and its remaining crew were suspended upside down, with a monstrous octopus attempting to drag the world into the sky's abyss.
Ethan glanced downward, taking a steadying breath. Below him lay a river, rushing towards him with alarming speed. Not far from its banks, he spotted a deck where figures were fishing out those who had jumped before him. "Looks like I'll have to deal with them first," he thought, his mind sharpening with purpose.
"From your memories, it seems you've had bad experiences with them…" murmured young Ethan, who had been silent until now. The words echoed in his mind, stirring old grudges. Without tearing his gaze from the figures below, Ethan grinned wickedly. "I guess it's payback time," he thought, feeling a surge of vengeful determination through him.
As he descended, the anticipation of retribution fueled his resolve. This was not just survival—it was an opportunity to settle scores, to confront those who had wronged him. The air around him crackled with energy, and his heart pounded with the promise of reckoning.